1

Silver, lead, zinc, gold, timber and water. The West Kootenay had it all and in great abundance. At the turn of the century, all eyes were focused on this part of BC making it a desirable place for investment. While Railways solved the problem of transport through the mountain passes, lake steamers, barges and tug boats took care of the north-south lake routes. Over the next ten years many millionaires would be made, albeit mostly out-of-the country investors. British Columbia, being the most westerly province, gave new settlers a last opportunity to make themselves a home. This resulted in an ethnic diversity unbound by strict traditions resulting in some homogeneity. Strangely enough the census of the day shows several nationalities for BC residents but as of yet refuses to accept the term Canadian for anyone.

2

SS Rossland
1900
Deer Park

3

Our phantom rider, who we called Fred, while voyaging on the Minto returned to port one day in 1901 to again see activity at the shipyard. He learned that because the Big Bend area (up the Columbia River above Revelstoke) was thought to be ripe for reopening by loggers and miners, a group of Revelstoke businessmen formed a company to build sternwheelers to navigate the river. Again the Nakusp shipyard was busy building this small but powerful ship.

4

SS Revelstoke
1902
Nakusp Shipyard

5

A bustling economy dominated by a large male workforce brought a need for accommodation that was met by the construction of hotels. Hotels nearly always offered a bar and men who frequented them often got drunk. In Nakusp three men; Henry Rose, Nels Demars, and John Cole had been drinking heavily at the Leland; they later left in a row boat to go down the lake to Rose's ranch. After landing, a squabble ensued resulting in Demars being beaten and Cole murdered. A trial in Nelson followed bringing a guilty conviction for Rose. He was sentenced to hang on the 21st of November 1902. Such crude punishment had begun to be seen as barbaric. It was the last hanging in Nelson.

6

Cole's Cabin
circa 1950
Shoreholme, Arrow Lakes, BC

7

While Fred was staying overnight at a hotel in Arrowhead in February of 1903, he witnessed a terrifying natural phenomenon. There was a sound like distant thunder; then a cracking of the thick ice in the northeast arm. The Kootenay was parked at the wharf, and the crew hurriedly unfastened the ship in order to get it out into the lake. Soon a huge wave bore down on the waterfront. Fred watched as the SS Revelstoke was thrown up on the shore and back three times. Even the old burned sunken hull of the SS Nakusp rose to the top and lingered for a few moments before sinking again. There was no serious damage or loss of lives from the wave, but it was determined that the wave was a result of a huge slide coming down from the top of a mountain in the northeast arm.

8

Arrowhead Slide
1972
Northeast Arm, Arrow Lakes

9

Fred's time in Arrowhead was quite extended. Intrigued by the town's growth and expanding industrial infrastructure, he knew he was watching progress at its highest level. Construction of the Big Bend Lumber Co. mill literally in the waterfront was showing that this company would have a plant rivaling anything on the coast.

10

Big Bend Lumber Co. with Adam Hall
1903
Arrowhead, BC